Gavin E. Hill

MDL Experience:

From 2010 to 2014, Gavin was a key member of Halliburton's trial team in the BP Oil Spill litigation arising out of the Deepwater Horizon incident in April 2010 (In re: Oil Spill by the Oil Rig “Deepwater Horizon” in the Gulf of Mexico, on April 20, 2010, MDL Case No. 2:10-md-2179). During the Phase I trial (In re: The Complaint and Petition of Triton Asset Leasing GmbH, et al., No. 10-2771; United States of America v. BP Exploration & Production, Inc., et al., No. 10-4536), Gavin was instrumental in developing and presenting the complex evidence supporting the "cause" of the blowout—a breach in the casing below the float collar—with which the Court ultimately agreed. As a member of the Halliburton trial team, he worked with fact and expert witnesses to reduce complex chains of events into understandable and persuasive trial themes, prepared witnesses for deposition and trial testimony and presented and cross-examined fact and expert witnesses in deposition and at trial.

Other Representative Experience with Complex Litigation:

• Represented a major onshore oilfield service provider in a well-blowout incident in which a regional OSHA office sought to impose citations. Worked with OSHA to understand the oilfield operations and ultimately obtained a settlement resulting in no citations to the client (2020). 
• Obtained a favorable settlement for a direct networking company against a former independent representative who had been a sales and marketing leader in client’s company but who quit and started a competing direct networking company in Texas (2020). 
• Obtained dismissal on motion for summary judgement on behalf of a major national freight broker in a case involving a bridge collapse and death/personal injury, where petition asserted claims for negligence, negligence per se, vicarious liability and single business/joint enterprise (2019).
• Obtained favorable settlement for a closely-held, family business (minority shareholders) in a case where client, who had developed an industry-leading leak and fuel monitoring service using artificial intelligence and related products, sold their majority shares to a national fuel distribution product company pursuant to a Stock Purchase Agreement.  The Agreement contained provisions assuring the buyer’s continued promotion of clients’ products/services, marketing assistance and the ability of the clients to earn a maximum earn-out over a period of time. The buyer was subsequently purchased by an international company whose affiliates directly competed with the clients’ products and services, and the buyer failed to perform under the provisions of the Stock Purchase Agreement.  Among other claims, clients asserted claims for breach of contract, tortious interference with contract, negligent misrepresentation, and fraud. The case was resolved on very favorable terms for the client prior to trial (2019).  
• Obtained favorable settlement for a national oilfield services provider in mediation against an oil well operator arising out of operator’s allegations that liner hangers were improperly installed in an oil well (2019). 
• Defeated TRO in favor of a Texas paper and packaging company where plaintiff alleged there was a “presumption of irreparable harm” when client hired plaintiff’s employee who had previously serviced accounts of plaintiff’s customers.  The case was ultimately settled in favor of the client, which included dismissal of all claims (2017-18). 
• Defeated plaintiff’s motion for Apex depositions of client’s executives in Texas in case arising out of a dispute over the supply of beef tallow to process into alternative bio-fuel (2017). 
• Obtained a voluntary dismissal, after initial discovery and depositions, of a major oilfield services provider in a benzene exposure case in which client was alleged to have caused the deceased’s AML (2016).